FAA Begins Use of AI Tool in Bid to Reduce Flight Delays

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) started the early deployment of an AI-enabled tool that could help flag air traffic issues before flights are delayed or canceled.

The tool, which the FAA has named Strategic Management of Airspace, Routes and Trajectories or SMART, is now live in the Washington, D.C., area, and the agency will deploy it gradually across the rest of the United States. More than 43,000 flights come in and out of the country each day.

Over 200 data sources: from airline schedules, weather conditions, routing, airport capacity, traffic flow and air traffic controller staffing. Using this data, a system by AI, it helps aviation experts understand predicted demand and potential congestion.

It's meant to make the management of air traffic more predictive rather than reactionary. Instead of waiting until congestion or bad weather throws a system into chaos, controllers can leverage the system to see a problem hours, days or sometimes even weeks ahead of time and evaluate whether a change to a schedule or a route is needed.

FAA said that may help optimize the use of airspace that is available, ease the flow of aircraft around weather and limit the impact of bottlenecks that can cause delays. Transportation Department said smoother airline operations could burn less fuel and have other cost benefits.

The FAA already has one big safeguard in place to prevent automated decision making from taking over: The system provides recommendations rather than mandates. It's up to the FAA staff to validate the system's recommendations, and local FAA leaders have the authority to ignore scheduling suggestions.

The new system is rolling out as the FAA seeks to overhaul an aging air traffic control system and fix staffing shortfalls. The agency awarded Air Space Intelligence a multibillion-dollar contract for SMART and for Flow Management Data and Services as the technological backbone of the FAA command center.

The first phase of the rollout will cover the Washington area and the region's major airports before expanding more broadly. Its success will hinge on how well the technology can predict the weather, airport capacities and traffic conditions.

However, for travelers, the FAA expects the predictive system to ultimately result in reduced delays, cancellations and disruptions as the agency more aggressively deploys AI to oversee the nation's intricate airspace.